A digital still camera (DSC) is configured to record an image in the digital data format using a CCD. A liquid crystal display mounted on the DSC allows a photographer to view and delete the image that has been shot. One applicable procedure using a general-purpose personal computer includes output of the image data, which has been shot by the DSC, such as displaying on a monitor and printing with a printer.
Respective DSCs have different characteristics in the color brightness or the color tone of a subject corresponding to a manufacturer and a type of a device. The difference depending on a type of an image output device causes such difference in the characteristics. In many cases, intentions of the photographer are not reflected on a resulting output image due to such difference.
Thus, the present invention provides a technique of utilizing the image file, in which image processing control data is added to the image data for controlling image processing. In the image file, a couple of shooting conditions, such as the shutter speed and the exposure time, are included. Such additional data, however, includes pieces of specific information that is uniquely set by each manufacturer of the DSC in order to present its own originality, which is undesired to be disclosed for the details. The image data itself is also undesired to be disclosed. As to the confidentiality regarding such data, nothing has been taken into consideration.
Those problems are discussed herein exemplifying the DSC; however, similar problems arise in an image data generation apparatus, such as a digital video camera and a scanner.
The object of the present invention is thus to provide a technique that ensures generation of the image file, in which the image data and the additional data are associated one another, with the confidentiality kept.